Former LaLiga ref Eduardo Iturralde González says Barcelona defender Gerard Pique should've been sent off at the end of Saturday's El Clasico.
Though he never left the bench, Pique received a yellow card for confronting ref Jesus Gil Manzano at the final whistle of Real Madrid's 2-1 win.
Watching Pique's meltdown was Iturralde González, who later told AS via Voetbalzone: "He must give Piqué a red card. He cannot let a football player talk his head off.
“As a referee you can make a lot of mistakes, but a referee must not lose his personality and must not allow illegal attitudes."
Iturralde González, 54, is a former Spanish LaLiga ref and officiated the El Clasico three times. He also was a regular referee of Champions League and Europa League games. Before retirement, Iturralde González had gained a reputation for allowing free-flowing games both in Europe and in the LaLiga.
Examining Gil Manzano's performance and his response to Pique, Iturralde González is adamant the referee was too soft. Indeed, the pundit pointed out a history of past incidents involving Gil Manzano where he should've been stronger.
He added, "What do I mean? I explain. It is the same referee who did not dismiss Arda Turan when he threw a boot at the linesman. And it is also the referee who did not give Marc Cucurella a red card when he was clearly out for him at half time and bumped into him on purpose."
Defeat at Real Madrid now sees Barca sitting in third place on the LaLiga table, a point behind second-place Real and two points from leaders Atletico Madrid.
- updated April 13
